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There is no such thing as free traffic.

by niffybranco
15 replies
  • SEO
    • |
Hello fellow warriors,

This thread is aimed more at newbies but mid level to professional marketers might learn a little from it as well.

When i first started IM i bought into a lot of courses and programs advertising free traffic, but i have been in this game for over 2 yrs now and i can empirically state that there is no such thing as free traffic.

You can only get traffic by paying.

You either pay in cash to programs such as Adwords, facebook ads etc

or

You pay with your time by doing SEO or social media marketing.

In this business or any other Time = Money and if someone tries to sell you some free traffic formula you need to ask how much time you are going to invest, you need to weigh this against how much your time is worth and what sort of return on investment you are going to get from the time you spend on that traffic method.
if you will not gain anything then your time is better spent doing more productive things.

Remember time = Money.
#free #thing #traffic
  • Profile picture of the author pheonix44
    The goal should be to use the free methods first that require an investment of time and then use some of the earned capital to get into paid marketing.
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    • Profile picture of the author Steven Wagenheim
      Okay, we get it...you pay with your time or you pay with your money.

      But there is still a big difference and I will illustrate it with a simple example.

      John Doe has to have a $3,000 bill paid in 90 days or he loses the use of
      whatever it is he's paying for.

      He has no money. That's his problem. So he can't spend money to get
      traffic. He needs every penny he has to earn that $3,000. And since that
      only comes to $1,000 a month, certainly doable with time intensive SEO,
      article marketing, social networking, etc, that's the route he takes and he
      EASILY makes his $3,000 if he uses his time wisely.

      There are some people out there who simply don't have a choice. I was one
      of them when I first started out and trust me, spending $200 a month on
      traffic was like a knife through the heart for me. Had I known about all
      the free methods I know of now back then, I would have NEVER taken
      the paid route. These days, I spend a pittance on promotion and make a
      very nice living.

      For some people, time is all that they have.
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      • Profile picture of the author thebitbotdotcom
        Originally Posted by Steven Wagenheim View Post

        Okay, we get it...you pay with your time or you pay with your money.

        But there is still a big difference and I will illustrate it with a simple example.

        John Doe has to have a $3,000 bill paid in 90 days or he loses the use of
        whatever it is he's paying for.

        He has no money. That's his problem. So he can't spend money to get
        traffic. He needs every penny he has to earn that $3,000. And since that
        only comes to $1,000 a month, certainly doable with time intensive SEO,
        article marketing, social networking, etc, that's the route he takes and he
        EASILY makes his $3,000 if he uses his time wisely.

        There are some people out there who simply don't have a choice. I was one
        of them when I first started out and trust me, spending $200 a month on
        traffic was like a knife through the heart for me. Had I known about all
        the free methods I know of now back then, I would have NEVER taken
        the paid route. These days, I spend a pittance on promotion and make a
        very nice living.

        For some people, time is all that they have.
        A unique perspective as always, Steve. I always enjoy your posts...

        Mark
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      • Profile picture of the author tpw
        Originally Posted by Steven Wagenheim View Post

        For some people, time is all that they have.
        Steven: I agree wholeheartedly...

        When I started online ten years ago, I struggled to pay the ISP fees, so my only currency was time...

        I am not saying that is wrong... I am just saying that people who start that way should eventually realize that they have two kinds of currency...

        Starting out, time is the best-spent currency to use... Through it, you will gain an appreciation for what it takes to be successful... But it must be noted that time is a fixed-volume currency... You only have so many hours in your week...

        With experience, money is a currency that will drive more profits, because it allows you to increase your effectiveness, buy purchasing hours from other people...
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        Bill Platt, Oklahoma USA, PlattPublishing.com
        Publish Coloring Books for Profit (WSOTD 7-30-2015)
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      • Profile picture of the author Mack
        Originally Posted by Steven Wagenheim View Post

        $3,000 bill
        Sounds a lot like myself!

        Great post Steven.
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        • Profile picture of the author Steven Wagenheim
          Once again, a thread gets moved to a place where it has no business being.

          This is a general traffic generation thread on paying for traffic versus
          using your time to generate it.

          Just unbelievable.
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      • Profile picture of the author NicoleBeckett
        Originally Posted by Steven Wagenheim View Post

        Okay, we get it...you pay with your time or you pay with your money.

        But there is still a big difference and I will illustrate it with a simple example.

        John Doe has to have a $3,000 bill paid in 90 days or he loses the use of
        whatever it is he's paying for.

        He has no money. That's his problem. So he can't spend money to get
        traffic. He needs every penny he has to earn that $3,000. And since that
        only comes to $1,000 a month, certainly doable with time intensive SEO,
        article marketing, social networking, etc, that's the route he takes and he
        EASILY makes his $3,000 if he uses his time wisely.

        There are some people out there who simply don't have a choice. I was one
        of them when I first started out and trust me, spending $200 a month on
        traffic was like a knife through the heart for me. Had I known about all
        the free methods I know of now back then, I would have NEVER taken
        the paid route. These days, I spend a pittance on promotion and make a
        very nice living.

        For some people, time is all that they have.
        Great post, Steven! If you work hard, you can absolutely succeed without spending a ton of money (or any!)

        The sad part is that there are plenty of 'gurus' out there trying to convince people that they can become millionaires overnight, with very little work. I don't think most people understand how much work really goes into working online. Just because you can wear your PJ's to work doesn't mean you can get away with not working
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  • Profile picture of the author thebitbotdotcom
    Either way you look at it, traffic is, always has been and will continue to be VERY expensive...even free traffic.
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  • Profile picture of the author Loren Woirhaye
    With experience and some degree of attention to detail however,
    you can increase your conversions of all traffic, which effectively
    makes your costs lower.

    The reason marketing is a challenging field to have ongoing success
    in is because it requires pretty intense skill and knowledge work.
    I guess there are some dumb guys out there doing well, but most
    who succeed are pretty sharp and motivated and skilled in
    several areas.
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  • Profile picture of the author tpw
    There always have been two types of currency that business owners can use to build a business:

    1. Time

    2. Money

    You can spend one or the other, or both, to get what you want...

    You can also vary the currency you utilize to get what you want...

    But you will never escape the truth in this statement...
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    Bill Platt, Oklahoma USA, PlattPublishing.com
    Publish Coloring Books for Profit (WSOTD 7-30-2015)
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  • Profile picture of the author niffybranco
    When i started i might have considered my time free , like Steve said that was all i had, but now my time is quite valuable, if a traffic generation technique is going to cost me a lot of time i need to evaluate it carefully to find out if i would make more money by simply paying for it and spending time on something more profitable that requires less temporal investment.

    So i guess it boils down to how much is your time worth to you?
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  • Profile picture of the author John Williamson
    Originally Posted by niffybranco View Post

    Hello fellow warriors,

    This thread is aimed more at newbies but mid level to professional marketers might learn a little from it as well.

    When i first started IM i bought into a lot of courses and programs advertising free traffic, but i have been in this game for over 2 yrs now and i can empirically state that there is no such thing as free traffic.

    You can only get traffic by paying.

    You either pay in cash to programs such as Adwords, facebook ads etc

    or

    You pay with your time by doing SEO or social media marketing.

    In this business or any other Time = Money and if someone tries to sell you some free traffic formula you need to ask how much time you are going to invest, you need to weigh this against how much your time is worth and what sort of return on investment you are going to get from the time you spend on that traffic method.
    if you will not gain anything then your time is better spent doing more productive things.

    Remember time = Money.
    Although I would argue that there is a small loophole: With mini niche sites, I can build one in 15 minutes flat and have it indexed and ranking within the hour, provided it's an EMD, with no backlinking or SEO work done.
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  • Profile picture of the author Shaunman
    there is no such thing as free traffic.
    Master These 3 SEO Skills For A Tidal Wave Of Free Traffic!
    Its a little funny that these two things came from the same person. Not that I am saying anything about the service I'm sure it is good just find it funny that your advertising free traffic and then saying there is no such thing as free traffic.

    But anyways, your right. Traffic either takes time or money and if you expect to get rich quick with no time or money, buy a lottery ticket. For everyone else there are plenty of things you can do.
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    • Profile picture of the author niffybranco
      Originally Posted by Shaunman View Post

      Its a little funny that these two things came from the same person. Not that I am saying anything about the service I'm sure it is good just find it funny that your advertising free traffic and then saying there is no such thing as free traffic.

      But anyways, your right. Traffic either takes time or money and if you expect to get rich quick with no time or money, buy a lottery ticket. For everyone else there are plenty of things you can do.
      LoL not selling it , it is a free course
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  • Profile picture of the author Georgie593
    Time is definitely money. Like others have said, you gotta start somewhere and build your way up the ladder!
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